Star Rail, Initial Single Draw Acheron

Firefly walked forward as she spoke. Xian didn't know why she had suddenly switched from guide to host, but she obediently followed her to the famous park.

Upon arriving at Aetherium Park, Xian immediately saw giant musical notes and lines floating in mid-air. The background music here was no longer a harmonious hymn, but rather a light and cheerful tune.

Following Firefly to the music plaza surrounded by musical notes, Xian saw that people were already performing there. Even stranger, the instruments they were playing seemed to play themselves, and the musicians looked more like animal tamers.

"In the dreams of Penacony, many items and facilities are influenced by Memory Matter and have gained self-awareness. They are then tamed by the Family and become the beautiful dream troupes that serve guests."

"However, these little things can also be affected by dangerous emotions or memories, turning into destructive nightmare troupes. If you accidentally run into one, be sure to ask nearby security personnel for help."

Firefly continued her duties, introducing the strange objects before them. Xian realized that these things were not written in the handbook and were likely known only to locals. After all, how could dangerous monsters appear in a perfect dream? If you encountered one, you could only say you were unlucky.

"You must try some Sūlèda soda while you're here. Let's go to the bar."

Firefly's gaze suddenly turned unfriendly. She glanced at the area behind Xian, then turned and walked towards the bar selling drinks. Xian knew that Firefly wasn't targeting her, but that something had happened.

"What's wrong?"

Xian followed Firefly to the bar to order. While the server was making the soda, he cautiously asked.

"Someone is following you. Male, tall, with a steady gait. His weapon looks like a short blade."

Firefly said with a serious expression. Xian was taken aback and thought carefully about the men he knew. Welt certainly qualified as tall, but he couldn't think of anyone else.

"He's already here."

Firefly didn't analyze further, but looked behind Xian and said. At least this person appeared openly, which was somewhat less dangerous. However, Firefly still placed her right hand behind her back. If anyone dared to harm Xian in front of her, she would stop them, even if it meant exposing herself.

Chapter 45: The Little Stellaron Moved, I'm Not Playing Anymore

"Yo, my dear friend, I didn't expect to see you here."

Dark blue hair, a tall build, and a flippant smile on his face, as if he were constantly eyeing the Credits in your wallet. This was the man who appeared before Xian.

"You're Sampo, what was it?"

Xian looked at the man before him with surprise, as he usually didn't pay much attention to men. If he could remember even one character, he should offer sacrifices to his ancestors.

"It's Sampo! I'm so hurt you forgot your friend Old Sampo."

Sampo's smile instantly collapsed. He pointed to his face and said sadly.

"It's Sampo. How do you think you should address me?"

Xian put on a friendly expression and asked a fatal question. If this person was truly Sampo, he would eat all of Firefly's oak cake rolls on the spot!

"Of course, as a dear friend, Ah Xian."

Sampo said without hesitation. Xian's smile widened, and he stepped forward to embrace the tall man.

"Ah, yes, yes, yes, good friend."

Xian patted Sampo's back and said. When they separated, he grabbed Sampo's butt. Sampo's expression clearly froze. He looked at Xian with an incredulous gaze, as if to say, "I never expected you to be gay!"

"So you two know each other. False alarm."

Seeing Xian and Sampo acting so intimately, Firefly retracted the item in her right hand and said to them with a smile.

"Good friend, meeting you here is fate. I'll take you to play some adult games."

Sampo enthusiastically greeted Xian, with the excitement of meeting an old acquaintance in a foreign land. Xian nodded and casually agreed.

"Adult games? You mean the lottery machines?"

Firefly asked in confusion. She had lived here for quite some time and hadn't heard of any adult games.

"No, no, those are toys for children. Come this way."

Sampo smiled mysteriously. He took over the role of guide, leading Xian and Firefly away from the park and towards a shop with a bar sign.

Xian and Firefly watched from behind as Sampo conversed with the bodyguards at the entrance of the bar. As it was a private bar, one had to pass the bodyguards' inspection to enter, and Sampo clearly hadn't.

"Sigh, it seems my old Sampo's influence isn't enough."

Sampo returned dejectedly. Firefly looked speechless. This guy had confidently snatched her job, only to end up like this?

"But did you think it was over? Look at that."

Sampo suddenly perked up again. He pointed to a television set placed on the street corner not far away. The television looked like an ancient mummy, but it was present in this beautiful dream. The reason it could exist was, of course, due to its special function.

"Friend, go press that switch."

Sampo pointed to the large red button next to the television. Xian glanced at Firefly beside him. She shook her head slightly, unsure if she was saying she didn't know what it was, or if she was saying not to take the risk.

Xian gave Firefly a reassuring look, then walked up to the television and touched the switch. Instantly, Xian felt his body become light, and his vision lowered considerably. The television, which he had been looking down at, now required him to look up. He looked down at his hands and feet and found that he had transformed into a monkey only thirty centimeters tall with a three-head-six-limbs body.

However, this monkey was quite dapper, dressed in a black suit and black hat, looking rather cool. Xian was very surprised. He wanted to speak, but could only let out a cool "Hmph!"

"Xian, you? Is that you, Xian?"

Seeing this, Firefly immediately shouted. She walked up to Xian, first touching the television with her hand, then looking down at the monkey on the ground. Although this was a dream, she had never known such a thing could happen before.

"Hmph!"

Xian couldn't speak at all now and could only answer Firefly with such a sound. Due to the difference in height, he had to look up to see Firefly, and as he looked up, he saw many things.

"Hmph!"

Xian raised his tiny palm and gave Firefly a thumbs-up. Firefly was stunned. She looked down at her skirt, then her cheeks turned red as she covered her skirt and stumbled back several steps. At this moment, one hand covered the front of her skirt, and the other hand went behind to cover the back. She displayed the shyness of a maiden to the fullest.

"Is this one of those adult games?"

Sampo grinned slyly at Qiong. Qiong readily nodded, gave him a thumbs-up, then walked over to the switch by the TV and touched it. His body immediately returned to normal.

"It's an immersive experience game. You swap with this character called Hanu Brothers and go into a dungeon to defeat the Stone Boss. You can only use in-game items. Pretty exciting, right?"

Sampo explained to Qiong. Qiong thought about it and felt the game was pretty ordinary. Wasn't it similar to the games he played with Silver Wolf? Both were immersive experiences.

"So that's how it is. But I'm a bit too old for that now."

Qiong had no intention of playing as Hanu Brothers. He was more concerned about Firefly beside him, so he walked over and waved his hand in front of her eyes.

Firefly looked up, her gaze at Qiong filled with a mix of annoyance and grievance. She wasn't wearing a dress just to give Qiong a free show. Though, in truth, she didn't really mind Qiong seeing her. If she truly disliked him, she wouldn't have approached him like this.

"Light green suits you very well, Firefly."

Qiong said with a chuckle. The expression on his face was as if he'd just found money on the street; he couldn't have been more delighted.

"You, you're still saying that."

Firefly raised her hand as if to hit Qiong, but she didn't follow through. She continued to glare at him with a huffy expression and said.

"If I saw it, I had to say something. Otherwise, I couldn't pretend nothing happened, could I? That would be self-deception. So, I wanted to compliment you to make it less awkward."

Qiong's attitude shifted as he spoke earnestly to Firefly. He was presenting a sincere stance, not being perfunctory or pretending to be oblivious.

"That's not how you compliment someone."

Seeing Qiong's improved attitude, Firefly felt he had a point. If he hadn't said that compliment, their interaction would have been filled with awkward silence for a long time. By addressing it directly, it wasn't as embarrassing.

"If anyone's to blame, it's old Sampo. He came up with the idea."

Qiong seized the moment and said. Firefly thought about it and felt he was absolutely right. Qiong was also a victim, so she shot an unfriendly glance at Sampo. It was all Sampo's fault for suggesting that "adult game." He deserved to die.

"No, man!"

Sampo clutched his head with both hands, quickly putting on a pained expression. He had proposed the idea, Qiong was the beneficiary, and now he was the one being blamed and disliked. This deal was a complete loss. Who could have imagined Qiong would sell him out so casually? Was this something a person would do?

PS: Please collect, recommend, and vote for monthly tickets.

Chapter 46: They Have This Kind of Service?

"Um, why don't we go check out the Dream Emporium?"

Firefly didn't dwell too much on what Sampo had done, perhaps out of consideration for Qiong. She changed the subject and offered to continue guiding them.

"Okay."

Qiong nodded, and the two walked forward side by side. Sampo's eyes held an unreadable glint as he followed them.

Qiong found himself returning to a familiar place and was surprised to encounter Doctor Edward again so soon. The guy had a bad temper, but he was genuinely skilled. The faint scent emanating from Robin in his dream was still fresh in his memory.

"Hello, Doctor Edward."

Firefly greeted him politely. However, she noticed that the usually polite, large eyeballs of the doctor now held a look of disgust, as if he had seen something dirty.

"Welcome. We've reached our guest limit for today. Please come again next time."

Doctor Edward said in a flat tone. Firefly was taken aback. This was the first time she had ever seen Doctor Edward refuse a visitor.

"Don't say that, Doctor Edward. I'd like to share my dream bubbles."

Sampo stepped forward and spread his hands, unsure what Doctor Edward was up to. In his hands were some strange materials that Qiong couldn't identify, likely materials exclusive to dreams.

"What does 'sharing dream bubbles' mean?" Qiong asked, confused.

"It means paying a price to have my dreams formed into dream bubbles, allowing for repeated experiences. You've all experienced this, right? Waking up in the morning still lingering on the dream's events and wanting to relive them."

Sampo explained the true use of Doctor Edward's service. Qiong had never heard of this before, and it wasn't something mentioned in the Dream Manual.

"You have this service here?"

Qiong looked at Doctor Edward with interest and asked. Did this mean if he could extract the dream he had with Robin, he could kiss the little bird anytime he wanted? Thinking about it, Qiong started licking his lips.

"No."

Doctor Edward gave him that "seen something dirty" look again and immediately denied Qiong's statement.

"This one's possible."

"This one is absolutely not possible."

Doctor Edward held his ground. What a joke! If Sunday found out he had made such a dream bubble for Qiong, it wouldn't just be a matter of being torn apart; he'd likely be banished to the most terrifying inferno to be tortured to death.

"Tsk, Firefly, look at this lousy shop. They're being unreasonable. Let's go, we'll leave a bad review."

Qiong clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction and prepared to leave with Firefly. Upon hearing this, Doctor Edward's eyeballs bulged, and the veins around them became prominent. He had never encountered such an infuriating Nameless.

"Wait, my good friend, don't be angry. I still want to let you experience a dream bubble."

Sampo became a little anxious seeing Qiong about to leave. He hadn't given Qiong enough hints yet; how could he let him leave like this?

"What's so great about your lousy dream? If I have this much time, why would I hang out with a rough guy like you instead of cuddling with a beautiful girl?"

Qiong said irritably. He had no interest in experiencing Sampo's dream. Speaking of beautiful girls, Firefly's lips curved slightly into a happy smile.

"Well... what if I guarantee there'll be beautiful girls in the dream?"

Sampo felt disgusted himself. No wonder Doctor Edward disliked Qiong so much. But there was no other way; for what was to come, he had to grit his teeth and continue persuading him.

"What kind of beautiful girl? I'm telling you, I'm very picky."

"You know, with twin tails, not too tall, but very lively, big eyes, very pretty, and she smiles a lot."

Sampo thought for a moment, then simply described an image. Honestly, there were billions, if not tens of billions, of beautiful girls like this in the galaxy. They held no allure whatsoever.

"You know people like that? Isn't it just a dream?" Qiong asked disbelievingly.

"Ah ha, you'll understand once you experience it."

Sampo said, coaxing her. In the end, Qiong couldn't refuse him and reluctantly accepted Sampo's dream bubble.

The feeling of dreaming was the same as before. She hazily entered a strange world. The location was the Underworld's Rock Town in Belobog, but the characters weren't people. Instead, they were all trash cans with arms and legs.

Qiong usually enjoyed rummaging through trash cans for food, but she didn't like them to the point of this. Thus, the dream became increasingly abstract. She walked and stopped, encountering many trash cans. She went through the plot as an observer, and finally, as a hero, she was supposed to challenge the King of Trash.

It was a very classic plot, but Qiong felt something was off. Sampo wouldn't have such a dream; this was clearly something he fabricated for her to see. So, Qiong broke free from the dream with her own strength, not engaging the King of Trash.

"Sampo, give me an explanation," Qiong said to Sampo.

"Oh dear, what a shame. I wanted to see how you'd deal with the King of Trash."

Sampo spread his hands in regret. Qiong's lack of cooperation made him feel very bored; the fun that should have been there was gone.

"What a pity, what a pity! Such a profound dream, and you didn't see the ending because you were distracted."

"Is the ending important? It's just a story. You, who use dreams to express your purpose, are the important one."

Qiong said to Sampo with a smile. Sampo's expression showed a hint of confusion. He felt like his identity might have been exposed, but he didn't continue Qiong's line of thought.

"The truth about beautiful dreams, aren't you looking for it? Don't be blinded by the scenery, dear. A comfortable environment breeds blind people."

Sampo reminded her. Qiong looked at him, confused. This person seemed to be reminding her with good intentions. Qiong didn't care about the truth of beautiful dreams. The biggest truth recently was that the Family had impure motives, but what did that have to do with her? There were so many tall people here, maybe even Envoys were mixed in. If the sky fell, would she have to hold it up?

Chapter 47: They're Trying to Trick Me

"Don't you think this dream bubble is very similar to Penacony today, hmm?"

Sampo continued to remind her. This meant he wanted Qiong to recall the dream with trash cans as the main characters. Qiong finally understood. Those trash cans were actually playing the roles of important figures in Penacony, and the final King of Trash was the mastermind behind everything.